In the book of Daniel it is prophesied that "knowledge shall
increase" until the time of the end, and indeed it has. Unlike
those who lived during Biblical times, we now know that the earth
is spherical in shape; that it, along with the other planets,
revolves around the sun; that our solar system is just a very small
part of an immense universe; and that both the universe and the
earth are extremely old. We also know more about our own biological
origins. The scientific evidence indicating that we, along
with the other life forms which inhabit the earth, have all evolved
from a common ancestor and are biological relatives is compelling.
Scientists refer to the 'fact' of evolution, and I believe
that there is justification for this.

Many religious people (not just fundamentalist Christians) cannot
accept this. Perhaps this is because it conflicts with the
explanation of our origins found in their sacred writings, or
perhaps it is because the idea that we are, in the physical
sense, a part of the animal kingdom is abhorrent to them, or perhaps
it is for both of these reasons. But the evidence for evolution
is so overwhelming that if one wanted to believe, for example,
that God created life on earth in a semi-instantaneous fashion
several thousand years ago then it would also have to be believed
that He did so in such a way as to make it appear that evolution
had occurred.

On the other hand, there are those who accept evolution but
fail to appreciate the spiritual significance of it. If humans
are a part of the animal kingdom, then human nature is essentially
no different from the basic nature of other animals. And what
is an animal's nature? Selfish. This is readily apparent to anyone
who has ever observed animal behavior. Throw a piece of bread
to a flock of pigeons and watch them fight over it- it's every
pigeon for him/herself. This selfishness is an intrinsic biological
characteristic- it is rooted in our genes- and is a logical
consequence of the evolutionary process (see, for example, "The
Selfish Gene" by zoologist Richard Dawkins, as well as other
works).

Of course, being highly intelligent social animals, human
selfishness (egoism) tends to be more subtle and more difficult to
discern than that of pigeons. We are higher primates, and we
share basic behavioral traits with our close relatives the apes.
In a recent book, anthropologist Meredith F. Small made the
following observation:

"As near relatives, what they [other primates] do and how
they act often echo what we do and how we act, and vice
versa. At the most basic behavioral level, all primates,
including humans, are highly social animals. We live in
groups of various sizes and, by definition, must manipulate
our social companions through competition or cooperation."

That is, we must manipulate our fellow humans in order to achieve
our self-centered desires. Moreover, from the standpoint of
self-interest, when living within a social context it can be a
successful behavioral strategy to be nice, kind, helpful and, to a
certain extent, to share. This is especially true for humans because
we are so heavily dependent upon our social companions for even
our most basic needs. Also, it can confer a competitive advantage
upon individuals to form various sorts of alliances, both
large (e.g. nations) and small (e.g. friendships), with others.

This view of human nature as being fundamentally selfish does
not conflict with the tenets of Christianity, but rather is in
good accord with them. By this I mean that the Christian view of
human nature is that it is evil; that this evil is rooted in our
flesh; and what defines behavior as evil is the quality of
selfishness. But the message of Christianity is that we have the
potential, spiritually, to overcome this evil nature and become one
with God and partake of His nature, which is good. We can be born
of the Spirit, through Christ, and not live according to the
dictates of our flesh. But this involves a radical departure from
even what would be considered as 'good' behavior by human standards.
Christ told his disciples that they would be "hated by all" (Mt 10:22),
and, though it may seem somewhat paradoxical, this is to be expected
if one does not pursue self-interest, even in a socially acceptable
manner.

Perhaps one of the most misunderstood and misused verses in
the New Testament is that which states that "God is love" (1Jn 4:8).
The world has latched on to this statement and assimilated
it into its collective consciousness. It is a popular sentiment.
But there is a problem. The problem is that God's love is
qualitatively different from what the world understands and refers
to as love. It is a fundamental position of Christianity that the
world does not know God (nor has it ever or will it ever know
Him). Consequently, if God is love, the world cannot know what
true love is. The 'love' that belongs to the world is something
which is basically a product of our biological nature and therefore
is grounded in our natural egoism. In all of its various forms,
it is really just a manifestation of self-love.

God's love, on the other hand, "seeks not its own" (1Cor 13:5)
but the good of the one who is loved- it has the inherent quality
of self-sacrifice, and is not concerned about the possibility of
gaining rewards or avoiding punishments, either here or
hereafter. Neither is it partial. It applies to
strangers and enemies as well as friends and relatives. And it
is definitely not a transitory emotion. It is something which a
person can only comprehend and experience if they have become
spiritually united with God and have taken on His nature,
in which case it becomes the prime mover of all thoughts and
actions.

Some time ago, I read a book about the films of Ingmar
Bergman. In it there was a commentary about the film "The Virgin
Spring", which is set in the Middle Ages and involves the story
of a young girl journeying to a church who is raped and murdered
by some goatherds she encounters along the way. According to the
author, she was partly responsible for her own undoing because
she had flirted with her assailants prior to the crime. "She has
no awareness of the darker passions underlying sexuality", he
asserted. I don't know if the author fully appreciated the
significance of that statement (probably not), but I certainly did.
It is something that I have a deep, unwavering conviction about-
namely, that there are dark passions which underlie sexuality.

The world commonly refers to having sex as 'making love', and
to those who have sex with each other as 'lovers'. I consider
this to be a terrible lie. In order for it to be referred to as
love, it would have to be an act of selfless generosity rather
than one of selfish, carnal, desire. Sex is a part of our animal
nature- we are driven by our inner biology to pass on our 'selfish
genes'. Certainly, animals are incapable of being motivated
by true love (i.e. God's love), and having sex is integral to
their behavior. There is no reason to expect that human motives,
at the deepest level and simply insofar as the physical act of
sex itself is concerned, are fundamentally different. One simple
corroboration of the negative, unloving quality of basic
sexual urges is the fact that psychologists seem to agree that
when suppressed these urges can find an alternative outlet in
the form of violent, destructive, sadistic, and even murderous
behavior.

But there is an added dimension to sexuality for humans which
results from our higher intelligence and consciousness. For me,
it is easy to see that pride plays a very considerable and distinctive
role in human sexuality. This is true not only in relation
to the behavior that is both directly and indirectly connected
with the physical act of sex, but also in relation to the
desire to produce offspring. This latter aspect sets us apart
from other animals- as far as we can tell even the more
intelligent species do not have a conscious awareness
of the reproductive function of sex- and can be an additional
and important motive for us to have sex.

Of course, none of this has anything to do with God or His
Spirit. In terms of spiritual purification, it is, in fact, something
to be overcome. And when I say overcome, I mean that in the
fullest sense of the word. The attitude towards sexuality which
is expressed in the New Testament is overwhelmingly negative, and
celibacy is clearly the ideal state for a Christian (although
marriage is also considered acceptable for those who cannot attain
to celibacy). The emphasis is definitely not upon romance, marriage,
procreation, family life, etc., as seems to be the case among
professing Christians today. I sincerely doubt that anyone would
ever consider reading the whole of the seventh chapter of
Paul's first letter to the Corinthians out loud at a contemporary
Christian wedding ceremony because it would be certain to cast a
pall over the festivities. If you are interested in reading it
yourself, I have created a special page containing it which you
can visit by clicking HERE.